1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to an ink jet textile printing method.
2. Related Art
Various types of recording methods have hitherto been used in which an image based on an image data signal is formed on a recording method, such as paper. In particular, ink jet recording, in which inexpensive equipment is used to discharge an ink composition only to an intended image area to form an image directly on a recording medium, allows for efficient use of an ink composition and is of low running costs. Furthermore, ink jet recording produces little noise, which makes this type of recording method advantageous.
A known way to improve the quality of a recording in this ink jet recording is the use of pretreatment liquid. For example, JP-A-2005-297567 discloses a system for printing a durable ink jet ink image to provide an image with improved image durability parameters such as smudge resistance, water fastness, and humidity fastness and a method and a system for forming such an image. This system includes: a) a first printhead containing a fixer composition including a charged fixer component, the first printhead configured for ink jet printing the fixer composition on a substrate; b) a second printhead containing an ink composition, the second printhead configured for ink jet printing the ink composition over the fixer composition, the ink composition including a colorant carrying an opposite charge with respect to the charged fixer component; and c) a third printhead containing a polymer overcoat composition, the third printhead configured for ink jet printing the polymer overcoat composition over the ink composition, the polymer overcoat composition also carrying an opposite charge with respect to the charged fixer component.
There are also methods in which a fabric is used as a recording medium. For example, JP-A-2010-255133 discloses an ink jet textile printing method to provide an ink jet textile printing method in which pretreatment and recording are easily done and a high-quality image is formed free from unevenness. This method includes providing pretreatment liquid, with the use of a line ink jet head, to a fabric attached to an adhesive belt having an adhesive portion on the surface thereof (process A) and providing an ink containing coloring material to the fabric with the use of a line ink jet head (process B). Process A and process B are arranged online in this order. The speed at which the fabric is transported in process A and that in process B are equal.
Printing an image on a fabric with the system described in JP-A-2005-297567, however, damages the suppleness, feel, and other natural texture characteristics of the fabric because not only the ink composition but also the polymer overcoat composition aggregates through reaction with the fixer component. Maintaining the suppleness, feel, and other natural texture characteristics of a fabric is simply referred to as “texture retention” hereinafter. Note that “maintaining” the natural texture of a fabric does not mean that the condition before the application of the ink composition is completely preserved.
The ink jet textile printing method described in JP-A-2010-255133 also causes damage to the suppleness, feel, and other natural texture characteristics of the fabric as a result of the pretreatment liquid reacting with the coloring-material-containing ink. Furthermore, this method, in which a line ink jet head is used to provide the coloring-material-containing ink, is likely to cause banding (the occurrence of “lines (areas left unpainted with the ink)” due to deflection of ink droplets or other causes) compared to multiple-pass printing with a serial head.
However, printing an image on the fabric without the use of the pretreatment liquid leads to poor color development on the printed fabric. This means that there is a trade-off between color development and texture retention.